Ladder device for silos.



J. F. MCGAFFEE.

LADDER DEVICE FOR SILOS.

APPLICATION FILED 001. 23. 1916.

1,231,037. Patented June 26,1917.

used.

JAMES F. McGAFFEE, or DES MO-INES, IOWA.

I LADDER DEVICE FonsILos.

Specification of Letters Patent. PatentedJun'e 2 6 1917.

Application filed October 23, 1916. Serial No. 127,285.

To all'whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMns F. MGGAFFEE, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Des Moines, in the county of Polk and tween-the ends of the hoops arelocated at different places in the circumference of the silo.

It is my purpose to provide a ladder whereby access maybe readily and easily hadto the sides of the silo, which ladder is made in separate units so constructed and arranged that they may readily and easily be detachably mounted and supported on the hoops of thesilo, which units have parts so constructed and arrangedthat the user of the ladder standing on one'of the ladder members and holding to another, may handle a third'ladder unit for supporting it on a hoopaboveor below the one. then being A further object'is to provide such a ladder having units-having movable members adapted to grip a silo hoop and so arranged that when the members are moved to certain positions they release the silo hoop from the gripping members.

My invention consists in the construction, arrangement and-combination of the various parts of the device whereby the objects contempl'a-ted are attained, as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in my claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

, Figure 1 shows aside elevation of a'portion ofasilo wall having hoops thereon with three units of my improved ladder installed Fig. 4: shows a vertical, sectional View of" a portion of the silo wall, and a vertical, sectional view of a portion of one of the units taken on the same line 33 of Fig. 2,

the parts being in a different position from that shown in Fig. 3.

In the accompanying drawings, I have used the reference numeral 110 to indicate generally the wall of a circularsilo structure on which are mounted the annular hoops 11.

My improved ladder preferably comprises in each case three units which are so constructed and arranged that they may be mounted on any of the hoops of the silo.

Each unit consists of a pair of horizontal, parallel, bars lawman when the unit is installed on the silo wall, extend away from the wall, as shown in Fig. 1'.

Extended through the ends'of the bars 12, which stand adjacent to the silo wall, is a rod 13 having screw-threaded ends on which are nuts 1 1; On the rod '13 between the bars 12 is a spacing sleeve 15.

Mounted on the outer ends of the rod 13 between the respective bars 12' and the respective nuts 14 are upright bars 16.

At the upper ends of the bars 16 are portions 17 projecting upwardly and outwardly.

Extending upwardly and inwardly from the portions 17 are members 18 having hook members 19' formed in their lower surfaces, as clearly shown in Figs. 1 and- 2.

The portions 17 are connected. by a-rod 20 extended through them having nuts 21 onits outer end.

Between the portions '17 'onthe rod 20, is a spacing sleeve 22.

Rotatably mounted on the rod 20, between the'ends of the spacing sleeve 22 and the respective portions 17 are bars 23 which normally stand downwardly and outwardly, as shown in the two upper units, illustrated in Fig. 1. The bars 23 have lugs 24 extending upwardly and outwardly when said bars are in the position just described,

and said bars having inward and upward extensions 25 forming hook members for engaging the lower part of a hoop. The

outer" ends of the bars23'are connected by a-ladder rung 26. The bars 12 are provided at their outer ends in their upper surfaces with notches 27 receiving the run g. 2.6.

In the practical use of my improvedladder, the first unit is 'seized by the operator andthe rung 26 is swung upwardly to substantially the position shown in the illustration of the lower unit in Fig. 1.

The hook members 19 are then placed over the lower hoop of the silo, as shown in Fig. 1, with the inner ends of the bars 12 resting against the silo wall below the hoop. The bars 23 and the rung 26 are then swungdownwardly until the hook members 25 engage the lower surfaces of the hoop on which the hooks 19 are supported, whereupon it will be seen that the hoop 11 is firmly gripped between the hook members 19 and 25.

At the same time the rung 26 rests in the notches 27 and a firm rigid ladder member is installed on the silo.

The user then mounts a second unit on a higher hoop. It will be noticed that the rung 26 of each unit, when the unit is installed, is located considerably below the plane ofthe hoop which supports the particular unit in question.

After two units have been installed, as above described, the user may then stand on the rung of the lower unit and grasp the rung of the next higher unit with one hand and with the other hand may install a third unit on a still higher hoop.

The user may then climb to position with his feet on the rung of the second or middle unit and may reach downwardly and grasp one of the bars 23 swinging it upwardly until it approaches the position shown in the case of the lower unit in Fig. 1, whereupon the lugs 24 will engage the upper surface of the lower hoop 11 and raise the lower unit until the hook members 19 disengage said lower hoop.

It will thus be seen that considerable leverage is furnished for loosening the unit which is being removed, which may be desirable in case the inner ends of the hook members 19 have been forced between the hoop and the silo wall, so that they are firmly held there.

The lower unit is then raised to position above the user and mounted on the hoop above.

In the same way the user, standing on the rung of the middle unit, may mount it on the hoop below him by grasping the rung 26 and swinging the unit inwardly against the silo wall until the hook members 19 rest on the hoop 11 below the user of the ladder.

By giving the rung a slight downward push, the unit being installed will naturally assume its proper position for use.

It will be seen that when any oneof the units is installed on the silo, it is firmly and rigidly held in position and the rungs are spaced away from the silo so that they may be readily and easily grasped, while at the same time they permit access to the hoop for tightening the turn-buckle thereon or the like.

The parts of the ladder are so arranged that the greater the weight imposed on the rung, the more tightly the ladder grasps the hoop.

Some changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of the parts of my improved silo ladder without departing from the essential features and purposes thereof, and it is my intention to cover by this application and patent to be issued thereon any modified forms of structure which may be included within the reasonable scope of my claims:

I claim as my invention:

1. In a device of the class described, a pair of upright bars parallel with each other, a pair of parallel bars extending horizontally away from the ends of said first bars, said first named bars having at their upper ends portions extending laterally and portions extending upwardly and inwardly from said last described portions having hook members formed in their lower surfaces, means for connecting the upper ends of said bars, a pair of parallel bars pivotally mounted with relation to the upper ends of said first named bars having extensions forming members to coact with said first hook members in gripping a silo hoop or the like and having lugs adapted to en gage such a hoop for removing said hook members when said last described bars are raised, and a ladder rung connecting the outer ends of said last described bars.

2. In a device of the class described, upright members arranged substantially parallel with each other, hook members at the upper ends of said upright members, bars pivotally mounted with relation to the upper ends of said first hook members adapted to coact with said first hook members for gripping a silo hoop or the like, lugs on said second described bars for engaging said hoop when said second described bars are;

moved to certain positions for forcing said first described hooks away from such a hoop, a ladder rung connecting the outer ends of said bars, and bracing or supporting members projectin outwardly from said upright members or supporting said rung when said bars are in their lowered position.

Des Moines, Iowa, October 7,- 1916.

JAMES F. MoGAFFEE. i

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0. 2 

